With You
by alleaf
Summary: Rose Weasley is rushing to attend a Quidditch match when Scorpius Malfoy—quite literally—drops in on her. After that, her life rapidly becomes crazier, but Rose finds herself not minding at all. Because love is crazy and messy and really, what she needed all along. Post-Hogwarts.
1. Chapter One

Disclaimer: It all belongs to JK Rowling.

**Chapter One**

Her heels clicked soundly against the pavement as she hurried through the busy streets of London. _I've got time, _Rose told herself_. I'm going to make it._

Well, she was going to have to make it, or else Dom would Avada her. Her cousin had only been gushing about her perfect box seat tickets for the past two months. Rose honestly didn't care much for Quidditch and couldn't explain a thing about the teams or players, but hell, after putting up with Dom's excitement every day for the past two months (they shared a flat, so there was no avoiding it), Rose would Avada _herself_ if she missed this match.

As she stopped at the crosswalk—like any good, law-abiding Muggle citizen—she checked the street signs to confirm that she wasn't lost, and then glanced at her watch. It was 5:26pm.

Oh sodding Merlin. The doors to the stadium closed at 5:30.

She was going to be late.

She was going to miss the match.

She was _so _Avada'd.

The stream of cars chose that moment to finally come to a halt, and Rose rushed forward, muttering apologies as she jostled other passer-by. At last, she spotted the _Everest Spice _restaurant that Dom had said was near the stadium. Rose had two minutes left—she could still make it! Half-jogging, she dug through her bag—where the hell was her ticket?

With her makeup bag, mPhone, and a couple case files (she'd been hoping to get some work done during the match) clutched under her left arm, Rose flipped through her wallet in hopes that she'd just tossed the ticket in there.

No such luck.

She glanced ahead—oh, there it was! The bright, flashing sign read "Puddlemere Stadium." Rose grinned. She was going to make it! Now, she only needed to find the bloody ticket. She opened her day planner. She was sure it was in here; it had to—

"Hey!" Rose cried indignantly. Some bloke had just knocked her over, sending her things flying everywhere! Shit, her files!

"Damn it. I apologize, Miss…"

Did this bloke just apparate on top of her? Merlin, Rose couldn't believe her luck. She shook her head. That wasn't even her primary concern right now—her work files were. She scrambled to pull herself up, but froze at the sound of a cringe-inducing snap.

Oh Merlin no, the bloke had stepped on her heel!

He cursed. "I'm really sorry, Miss," he said, and extended a hand to help her up. But Rose was too irritated to accept it. Ignoring him, she hobbled over to gather her files, which, thankfully, were only a few feet away.

"Hang on—Rose Weasley? Is that you?"

Rose looked over to the wizard who had just single-handedly ruined her Monday night, only to realize that he was none other than the Slytherin Quidditch Captain and Prefect who'd ruled the school during her Hogwarts days. He hadn't changed much. With his tousled platinum blond hair, piercing blue eyes, aristocratic features, he was, admittedly, still the sexiest man Rose had ever seen in her life.

"Scorpius Malfoy," Rose replied coolly. Just because he was gorgeous didn't excuse the fact that he'd ruined her night in about 45 seconds flat. Rose was sure it was well past 5:30 by now, and there was no way she was getting into the stadium.

Malfoy offered her a lazy grin and helped retrieve her other belongings. "It's been too long, Head Girl. How are you?"

Rose rolled her eyes. A lot certainly had changed in two years, but she'd no clue what Malfoy had been up to. They'd been casual friends in school, though he'd been closer with some of her other relatives (they bonded over their love of Quidditch). Rose struggled to remember if he'd ever told her about his post-Hogwarts plans: a Healing program? Working at his family's company?

At his expectant look, Rose sighed. "Well, I've been better, that's for sure." Then another thought occurred to her. "Wait a minute, did you apparate out here in the open? That's so irresponsible, Mal—Scorpius! What were you thinking? Muggles could've seen you!" It was the reason Rose didn't apparate here herself. Well, that and the fact that she didn't fancy being splinched, since she couldn't conjure up the image of where she was trying to go.

Malfoy smirked at her. "You know what, Rose? I've actually missed this. Life just isn't the same without the Head Girl reprimanding your wrongdoings."

"Oh, for Merlin's sake," Rose groaned.

He laughed. "So what brings you around here? Going to the match?"

Rose shot him a dark look. "Yeah, but I'm too late… I won't be allowed admission."

"Why not? The match starts at 6."

"But haven't you heard about the new League regulations? You know, how everyone has to be admitted at a designated time before the match, for crowd control purposes?" Rose herself only knew this because Freddie worked in the Department of Magical Games and Sports.

"And people actually abide by those rules?" he asked, a sceptical brow arched.

Well, according to Dom they did, but Rose didn't actually know. She shrugged.

Malfoy seemed amused. "Well, come on. I'm, er—attending the match too. Let's see if you're right."

He began walking towards the flashy sign, and Rose made to follow him, but she unexpectedly lurched forward. Damn it—her heel was still broken! Malfoy turned around just in time to steady her, one hand firmly wrapped around her waist, his tall frame towering over her petite one. He glanced down at her broken Louboutins and then up at her face.

"Are you all right?" he murmured. He was so close and Rose didn't know what was wrong with her but she couldn't formulate a single coherent sentence. She could only nod.

Scorpius' mouth quirked into a slight smile. He stepped back a little, his hand dropping away, and with it, the magnetic spell that had settled over them.

"I'm fine," Rose said, clearing her throat and nodding again. Merlin, it wasn't as if she had enjoyed his touch… absolutely not.

Embarrassed, she crouched down and transfigured her heels into simple flats. See, the problem was that _reparo_ didn't work on clothes and shoes, because magic wasn't sure what was "fixed" or "broken" when it came to fashion. Rose bit back a giggle as Lily's grunge phase came to mind. It had been hilarious watching Uncle Harry try to cast _reparo _on his daughter's stylishly ripped clothing.

"Did you like those?" inquired Scorpius. "The shoes, I mean."

Did she like her shoes? They were only her favourite (and only) pair of Louboutins! "I wouldn't have bought them if I didn't."

He smiled. "Fair enough." Then, after a pause: "Let me make it up to you."

"What?" Rose asked, but he was already walking away.

"Come on, Rose. We don't want to be late!" he called, laughter evident in his tone. Rolling her eyes, she trudged after him, but only in hopes that she'd be allowed into the stadium. She wasn't too keen on being Avada'd by Dom, after all.

As they approached the entrance, Rose saw that there were two wizards manning the door. The first, who was skinny and blond, seemed very serious, and Rose knew even before she addressed him that he wasn't going to let her tardiness slide. The second was dark-haired and built, but was looking at her in an unsettling, slightly lascivious manner.

She approached the first one. Glancing at Scorpius, who was a few feet behind her, she did a double take. Why was he wearing his hood up?

"Can I help you?" said Blondie dully.

"Oh!" Rose smiled sheepishly. "Hi, sorry. I'm here for the Puddlemere United match," she said as brightly as possible. People responded positively to that, right?

"It's after 5:30, Miss, you're late… I'm afraid we can't allow you inside. New policy," he said.

"Oh, but—come on, please? This is my first pro Quidditch match and my cousin will kill me if I don't go in and watch with her!" Rose hadn't checked her mPhone but she was sure there were plenty of angry messages from Dom awaiting her. "Please? No one informed me of the new policy…"

Blondie seemed unfazed by her protests, but the other man began to chuckle. "All right, gorgeous. I can let you in, but I'm going to need something in return," he said suggestively.

_Excuse me?_ Rose grimaced. The way he was ogling her made her feel uncomfortable.

Rose folded her arms across her chest and took a step backwards, right into Scorpius. She gasped softly and stared up at him. He'd taken off his hood but wasn't looking at her. Instead, with a hand on the small of her back, he guided her towards the entrance.

"Mr. M-Ma-Malfoy," squeaked Blondie. Rose glanced at Scorpius in confusion, but his eyes were trained on the other man.

"We're going in," said Scorpius, his gaze steely. "She's with me." His tone left no room for argument.

Blondie opened the door immediately, and his partner nodded sheepishly. "Of course, Mr. Malfoy. I'm sorry, Miss."

Rose ignored the two men, but when they entered the lifts and Scorpius had pressed the button for Level 250 (apparently, Puddlemere Stadium was in the same space as another Muggle stadium, only much higher up), she asked, "What was that?"

"Some men are creeps," shrugged Scorpius.

"That's not what I meant. Why did they let us in like that? They knew you."

"Well, _you_ know me," he pointed out, grinning.

Rose rolled her eyes. She wanted to push for an answer but something about Scorpius' easy smile stopped her. She liked him much better this way. Instead, she said, "Only because you were such a rotten Prefect."

"Rotten? I resent that. I was a fantastic Prefect, babe," he said, leaning against the railing.

Rose blushed. "Slytherins still caused a lot of trouble."

"Minimal compared to what your family got up to," he said, and Rose had to concede his point. "And it was all manageable, controllable trouble. Besides, what's wrong with having a little bit of fun every now and then?"

"You mean like what you did while you were supposed to be patrolling?" Rose muttered, thinking back to all of those times she caught him snogging witches in broom cupboards.

"What was that?" grinned Scorpius.

"Nothing, nothing. Do you think they'll have food up there?" Rose asked, hoping he would take her cue to change the subject. Damn it, why did she bring that up? She was certain her face was scarlet red.

Rose was beyond relieved when the doors opened to their floor. She sped out of the lift immediately and could hear Scorpius' laughter trailing behind her as she entered the massive, marble-floored, glass-walled lobby. She ignored him and examined the space, which was tastefully decorated, with Quidditch banners and flags everywhere.

"Is this the main entrance?" she asked, examining the photos that lined the walls. She wondered why there were no other people around. Well, there were a few uniformed employees, but no other spectators.

"No, this is more like the… VIP level."

"Why are we in the—" Rose stopped abruptly, all of her questions answered as she caught sight of a banner featuring Scorpius' face:

**Welcome Scorpius Malfoy, Puddlemere United's Newest Chaser!**

Rose whirled around to face Scorpius. "You play Quidditch?"

"Erm, yeah," he said. "Just transferred from the Magpies. Today's my first match for Puddlemere."

Her jaw dropped. "You played for the Magpies?" Since when? Rose knew from Dom that the Montrose Magpies were one of the best teams in the League. And why did he transfer?

Scorpius chuckled, walking towards the double doors at the end of the lobby. "See, this is why we should've kept in touch, Rose. I would've told you anything you wanted to know."

She followed. "I just thought you were—I don't know…"

"What?" His tone was genuinely curious.

"Um… well, I thought you would go into a healing program. I remember you wanted to be a healer, right?"

They had reached the doors that led to the stadium, and Scorpius turned towards her, his expression unreadable. "You know," he murmured, "You might just be right, Head Girl." Then he held open the door. "Enjoy the match."

Rose glanced at her watch. It was only 5:45. There was still plenty of time to find Dom. She frowned at Scorpius. "Aren't you late for a team meeting, or pep talk, or whatever it is you Quidditch players do before big matches?"

He smirked. "Probably. But I dropped in on a beautiful witch and it wouldn't have been right not to take advantage of the opportunity."

Rose rolled her eyes. "You think you're charming."

"And you don't?"

She laughed, stepping out into the stands. He remained at the doorway. "Good luck on your first match, Mr. Charming."

Scorpius grinned. "See you around, Head Girl."

* * *

**A/N: **Hey, thanks for reading! This idea sort of just came to me... I'm not sure whether or not to continue, so please review to let me know what you think! I'd be so grateful!


	2. Chapter Two

Disclaimer: It all belongs to JK Rowling.

**Chapter Two**

"Rose! Over here!"

The redhead, having been on the search for her seat ever since leaving Scorpius ten minutes prior, sighed in relief when she finally found Dom. Their box had conveniently been located on the opposite side of the stadium. Tiptoeing past the other spectators in the box ("Sorry! Excuse me. Excuse me. Merlin, I'm so sorry, I swear I'm not normally this clumsy…"), she dropped into the plush seat next to her blonde best friend and beamed. "Fancy seeing you here, Dommie!"

"You _do_ own a phone, don't you?" remarked Dom, flipping through the pages of her tabloid. "I was almost positive you'd be locked out of the stadium, and trust me, Rose, I'd have Avad—"

"Avada'd me if that happened," finished Rose. She rolled her eyes. "I know, I know. I got held up…"

"Let me guess. You ran into Prince Charming, he swept you off your feet, and then the two of you strolled merrily off into the magical sunset?" said Dom, rolling her eyes.

Rose opened her mouth to respond. She frowned, and then, abruptly, she closed it.

Scorpius wasn't exactly a prince ("Mr. Charming…"); she'd tripped into him because _he'd _broken her heel; and they'd actually walked towards the _magically-lit_ "Puddlemere Stadium" sign, but…

"Yeah, right," Dom was laughing. "Knowing you, you were probably finishing up an assignment for Goldsmith, weren't you? Merlin, Rose, I know you love IMC, but you're kind of a workaholic. It's not healthy—"

Really, Rose knew better than to speak before thinking, but she had been so fed up with her cousin criticizing her work habits (yes, she _was_ incredibly passionate about international magical cooperation, but she certainly didn't let it rule her life), that she couldn't help but blurt out: "I wouldn't exactly call Scorpius Malfoy Prince Charming."

Even as she said it, she was cringing. She was _so_ going to regret that.

"—you know I love my job, obviously, but my life doesn't revolve around writing for the _Two-Way Mirror_! I—wait, _what_?"

"Hmm?" (Act like nothing happened; act like nothing happened…) The redhead blinked innocently, prepared to effect total nonchalance. "Yeah, I know. You're right. Health _is_ really important and I don't focus on it enough. I'm thinking about trying out that vegan thing—you know, the one that Muggles are so crazy about?"

But Dom continued to gape at her.

"Too extreme? You're right. Maybe just a few extra salads, then? One of my co-workers, incidentally, has a great recipe for kale—"

"YOU'RE SHAGGING SCORPIUS MALFOY?"

Oh fucking hell.

Why couldn't they just talk about kale?

Rose's cheeks were burning and she could feel at least thirty other spectators staring at her, their jaws hanging wide open.

Dom seemed to have noticed the blatant staring as well. "Oi! Mind your own business, you gits. Don't take the raised volume of my voice as an open invitation to our private conversation!" Then she turned to Rose, demanding in a hushed voice, "Why didn't you tell me you were shagging Scorpius Malfoy? We could've gotten VIP seats!"

"I'm not shagging Scorpius Malfoy!" the redhead whispered back. Then she frowned. Why were they whispering? "Muffliato," she said, waving her wand around the two of them.

"Then what was that whole thing about Scorpius Malfoy being Prince Charming?" demanded Dom.

"The whole thing was about him _not _being Prince Charming!"

"Why is there even a thing about him in the first place?"

"Because! Scorpius ran into me—or rather, he apparated _onto_ me—while I was on my way over here, and _that's _why I was late, and then when you brought up the thing about meeting a bloke, getting swept off your feet, and then walking towards the… I don't know! It just—it paralleled!"

"So you _did _shag him!"

"What…? No—what are you talking about? Why would you—?"

"Well, I said the two of you strolled merrily off into the sunset!"

"So?"

"That's a euphemism for going off to shag!"

"_What_? No, it's not! Oh for Merlin's sake, Dom. That cliché you spouted is straight out of a Muggle fairy-tale! For _children_. Absolutely no shagging!"

"…huh…" Dom was thoughtful for a moment. "So no shagging? None at all? You must've gotten at least a little action. He looks like a bloke who could _really_ satisfy—"

"Oh bloody _hell_." Rose buried her face in her hands. "No shagging! None! Zilch. Nothing happened between us. Nothing at all."

Dom smirked at her knowingly. "Well, someone sounds disappointed."

The redhead glared. "I hate you."

But her cousin only laughed. "Oh come on, Rose. Spill. How _did_ you run into Malfoy? I know you're dying to talk about this."

Rose huffed. "Only because I'm feeling generous," she said. "Okay, so, I was on my way…"

"Wow," breathed Dom after Rose had finished briefing her on the run-in with Scorpius. "'Dropped in on a beautiful witch and…' wow, he actually said that? Merlin, that's pretty smooth."

Rose shrugged noncommittally.

"Why do you always get the good blokes and I always get stuck with the losers?" complained the blonde.

Rose laughed, rolling her eyes at her gorgeous part-Veela cousin. "You're delusional, Dom. That's just not true and you know it."

"Okay, _fine_, maybe. But still, you _are_ pretty damn lucky. I can't believe you're seeing Malfoy—"

"For the last time, there is nothing going on between us, Dom. We're just former classmates! Casual friends!" insisted Rose.

"Ugh, whatever." Dom sighed wistfully. "Why couldn't I have been in your year?"

"Well, one: because then your name would be Louis. And two: jealous? Class of 2024 trumps 2022 any day!" grinned Rose. "You know, because 24 is 'greater' than 22…?"

Dom shook her head sadly. "You're so lame. And yeah, no thank you!" She smirked. "I'm much cooler than him."

Rose laughed, rolling her eyes. Louis, Dom's younger brother, was also one of her best mates, so—

"Oh, crap! Rose, the match is starting!" exclaimed Dom. She quickly broke the Muffliato spell around them. They'd been so wrapped up in their conversation that they'd almost missed out on the actual match.

The commentator's Sonorus-enhanced voice was immediately audible: "…and that's Harris, hot on Malfoy's tail, with Williams closing in! The new chaser's teammates are indisposed, busy fending off Gelson and McKiddie's Bludgers. Just where are Hill and Derby? Puddlemere is displaying some pretty weak defence right now, wouldn't you agree, Phil?"

A new, much deeper, voice, presumably Phil's, replied, "Yes, you're certainly right, Tim, though you do have to give Malfoy credit. He's doing a remarkable job evading the Falcons' attempts at fouling—even without his Beaters' aid."

Rose had never been so transfixed by a Quidditch match in her life—which, coming from a girl who had to be guilt-tripped into attending school matches, wasn't exactly saying much. But there was no denying that professional Quidditch was played on a different level entirely.

"These Falcons are really playing dirty today! Malfoy barely evades Williams, weaving out of there in a nicely executed Kandinsky Manoeuvre. Now, if only—oh, yes, here we go and—MALFOY SCORES! 10-0 to Puddlemere! That's Scorpius Malfoy with the first goal of the match!"

"Just fantastic," commended Phil. "Malfoy's performance must be making Puddlemere management very excited. For those of you who don't know, Scorpius Malfoy has just recently transferred from the Montrose Magpies—"

"Now, correct me if I'm wrong, Phil. But Malfoy never formally gave a reason for the transfer, did he?"

"No, no, he didn't. And that's not the only bit of mystery surrounding this young Quidditch star," said Phil. "In fact, today, he reportedly didn't arrive at the stadium until 15 minutes before the match started..."

"Blimey, Phil. That can't have made Coach Wood happy. Any speculation as to why?"

At this, Dom gave Rose a pointed look, but the redhead rolled her eyes, frowning. She herself only encountered Scorpius about half an hour before the match's starting time—and half an hour before the match was still late, she was sure. She remembered he had been in a huge rush when he'd apparated in, but why? Why had he been so late?

"Well, whatever the reason is, that's all irrelevant now. Malfoy's skill on the pitch speaks for itself. Here he is, in possession of the Quaffle once again, and—Malfoy scores! 20-0 to Puddlemere!"

The match continued in a similarly adrenaline-inducing fashion, with Puddlemere United ultimately winning 370-110. Happily, Rose and Dom decided to end their night with a late dinner at one of their favourite pubs, _The Knotty Kneazle_.

"I want another drink," grumbled Dom, twirling a strand of spaghetti around her fork.

Across the table, Rose shook her head firmly. "Sorry, Dommie. I'm cutting you off. You have to work tomorrow."

"But I can just take a hangover potion in the morning! And are you sure it isn't Friday? It feels an awful lot like a Friday night."

"Tough luck. Happy Monday!"

"Margarita Monday?" The blonde's voice was overly hopeful.

"You definitely have a problem, Dommie," smirked Rose.

"At least _I_ can hold my liquor!"

"Who can't hold their liquor?" inquired a new, very smooth, and very familiar, voice.

Rose's head snapped up, startled by the sudden appearance of the tall, smirking, platinum blond Quidditch player.

Erm.

What was Scorpius Malfoy doing next to their table? Shouldn't he be out at some celebratory party? That was what her cousins and brother did whenever they won a match…

"Are you stalking me?" asked Rose, suspicious.

"Ouch, Rose. Slytherin, remember? I'd be a much better stalker than this." He smirked, turning to Dom with an extended hand. "Hi, I'm Scorpius. You must be Dom?"

"Yeah, so pleased to meet you," she said, grinning. "Rose has told me _so_ much about you."

Scorpius chuckled. He looked at Rose. "All bad things, I expect?"

"Is there any other kind?" She rolled her eyes, a slight smile on her lips. "Oh, and congratulations on the match."

"Thanks, Head Girl," smirked Scorpius. "I knew you were a Puddlemere supporter."

"How can you be so sure I'm not a diehard Falcons fan?"

He laughed. "Well, if anything, you'd be a diehard Cannons fan. But you were at a home match for Puddlemere, and I'd hoped you had better taste than that, what with all the Quidditch talent in your family. And if you didn't, well…" He grinned crookedly at her. "Then I'd take it upon myself to persuade you… personally."

Something about the way he spoke made Rose blush. She lowered her gaze, wondering what it'd be like to have Scorpius Malfoy _personally_ persuade her…

She glanced up to find Scorpius still staring at her, his teasing grin replaced by a different, more intense gaze. Her breath hitched slightly—

Abruptly, Scorpius looked away, his cheeks slightly flushed. His voice, however, was light and casual as he nodded at Dom. "So, Dom, you must've been a few years ahead of us in school? I've met a lot of Weasleys, but I don't recall meeting you."

Dom smiled. "Yep! I was Class of 2022."

"Ah, brilliant," nodded Scorpius. "Class of 2022, well…" he shrugged. "Not quite as cool as Class of 2024, of course, but still cool."

Dom laughed, a curious brow arched. "And why is that?"

"Because 24 is 'greater' than 22, of course."

Dom's jaw fell open, but Rose nodded in agreement. "See, Dom? Scorpius agrees!"

The blonde grinned, nodding uncharacteristically eagerly. "Oh, look at you cool kids."

"Well," chuckled Scorpius, "I suppose it's only fair that Rose gets to be a little bit cool."

Rose crossed her arms. "I'll have you know, I'm very cool."

The Quidditch player grinned rakishly. "Well, I'll have to see it to believe it. Anyways, I should be getting back to my new teammates. Nice meeting you, Dom. And thanks for letting me drop by again, Head Girl."

Rose rolled her eyes, a soft smile playing on her lips as Scorpius left. Glancing across the table, she frowned. Why was Dom smirking at her like that?

"Yes, Dommie?"

"This is _so_ much better than a Muggle fairy-tale."

* * *

**A/N: **Thanks so much to everyone who reviewed, alerted, and favorited! I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and please review if you'd like to see more! :)


	3. Chapter Three

Disclaimer: It all belongs to JK Rowling.

**Chapter Three**

"_Rose. _Rose, wake up!" hissed Dom. "Victoire's going to be out soon. If I have to suffer through this, then so do you."

The redhead lifted her head off of the table and frowned. "Well, aren't you just the perfect maid of honour."

"Girls…" said Aunt Fleur, standing just outside her eldest daughter's fitting room. She shot both Rose and Dom a look of absentminded disapproval.

Rose sighed. She was only so bloody irritated because she'd been dragged out of bed to attend dress fittings for Victoire's upcoming nuptials—for the fourth Saturday morning in a row. Rose loved her cousin and she loved shopping and dresses, and she was all for love and marriage and _whatever_, but she'd had a killer week at work, and all she wanted was to sleep in and maybe read a nice book in bed. Was that too much to ask for?

Dom laughed loudly. "Look at this," she said, nodding to the _Witch Weekly _open in her lap. "Cecilia Bole was caught cheating with a wizard thrice her age! Oh, poor Damen…"

Rose glanced over, rolling her eyes at the photo of Cecilia Bole, a leggy Slytherin in Dom's year, leaving a hotel room with a grey-haired man Rose didn't recognize. In the corner of the page was a picture of Damen Zabini, Bole's ex-boyfriend, a handsome Italian wizard whom Dom used to hook up with at Hogwarts.

"Poor Damen, indeed," agreed Rose, a smirk on her face. "I've got to hand it to you, Dom. He really is fit."

Dom giggled, sliding the magazine over to Rose with a mischievous smile. "You know who else is fit?" Her smile widened. "Your Quidditch player."

Rose's eyes skimmed across the two-page article, which was entitled "Britain's Most Eligible Bachelor?" and featured a shirtless photo of Scorpius. She felt her stomach flutter. Merlin, Scorpius was sexy. And she remembered first-hand how his body felt pressed up against hers, too…

"Ha, I knew you were into him!"

Rose refused to meet Dom's eyes, blushing slightly. Her barmy cousin had been bugging her to owl Scorpius ever since meeting the Quidditch player earlier in the week, claiming that "there was clearly _something_" going on between the two of them.

The redhead shook her head and shot Dom a meaningful "we're not talking about this here" look, because if Aunt Fleur heard, then Uncle Bill would know, and before long, so would the entire family. Her uncles (and dad) gossiped more than Hogwarts portraits did, and, often, with disastrous results.

Dom rolled her eyes. "Just admit it, Rose," she continued in a low singsong voice. "You like Scorpius! And believe me, you're _not_ alone, honey. Unlike the rest of us, however, you actually have a shot, _so owl him_."

"I—okay, _fine_, I think he's really fit," whispered Rose. "But you're wrong if you think I have any chance! Blokes like him don't go for girls like me, and besides, they _always _have a girlfr—wait, 'eligible bachelor'?"—She glanced down at the _Witch Weekly _editorial and then up to a very self-satisfied Dom—"So… no girlfriend?"

"Not for almost two years!"

"Huh—"

"Ah, you look marvellous, my dear! Simply marvellous!"

The exuberant voice of the Atelia Vika saleswitch announcing Victoire's emergence from the fitting room commandeered Rose's attention. She watched as her cousin stepped out in a voluptuous white gown with poufy long sleeves, and frills and ruffles adorning the entire length of the train. She sported uncharacteristically messy blonde hair and, with her smudged makeup, looked as if she'd just lost a fight with the Giant Squid. Rose cringed. It honestly looked as if the dress was wearing Victoire, not the other way around.

Victoire frowned as she examined herself in the three-panelled floor length mirror. "Maman…"

"You look gorgeous, darling!" insisted the saleswitch. "If you don't buy it, I'm buying it for myself!"

"Maybe you should," muttered Rose at the same time that Dom said, "Oh Merlin, _no_. You're better off in Moaning Myrtle's dress, Tor."

Victoire flipped her sister the bird and Aunt Fleur gave her daughters another look of mild disapproval. Rose hid a smile. She supposed that when one had a son as daredevil-esque as Louis, the one finger salute wasn't quite so bad.

"Gorgeous?" asked Aunt Fleur in astonishment. "If zis is what you call a 'gorgeous' dress, zen per'aps we should go elsewhere!"

The smile prompted slid off the other witch's face. "Oh, no, no, of course not, Mrs. Weasley! I apologise. We have plenty of other styles for your daughter to try on. We'll find the perfect dress for her yet! I promise," she said, quickly disappearing into the back.

Her aunt sighed. "If zat witch zought I would pay for somezing as 'ideous as zat, zen she is out of 'er mind."

Victoire groaned. "Merlin, we've gone to almost ten shops. At this rate, I'm never going to find the perfect dress!"

"Don't worry so much, Tor. These things always work out somehow. And we have two more months! It's going to be fine," said Dom.

Victoire sighed and nodded, looking at Rose for… reassurance? _Wrong person, Tor. _The redhead attempted to offer her best smile. "We're going to find it in no time," she said. _Or else she might drop out of the wedding party—if only to sleep in on Saturdays._

* * *

Two and a half hours later, the search was finally over. On the hanger, the simple white dress didn't look like much, but on Victoire, it made the bride-to-be look ethereally beautiful. Seriously. Everyone was ecstatic_—_well, until they realized that they now had to focus on bridesmaid dresses…

Rose, now slightly less grumpy but much hungrier, was currently perusing gowns near the front of the shop. A pale blue dress in the window display caught her eye, and she went over to take a closer look. The wedding colours were blue and gold, so this dress could really work. It was made of pleated chiffon and featured a modest slit to mix things up a bit, but wouldn't detract from the bride's beauty (though Rose doubted any dress's ability to do that when Victoire was the bride).

She stood on her tiptoes to measure herself against the dress on the mannequin, and beamed, doing a little happy dance. The length was perfect—it was modest but not too long. At exactly 5' in height, Rose religiously shied away from long dresses.

Excited, Rose made to inform the others of her find. She—

Hang on.

A very familiar and exceptionally good-looking man stood just a few metres from the boutique, looking at her through the glass windows.

Scorpius?

Rose stared back at him, arms crossed and eyes narrowed. Seriously, was he stalking her? First dinner on Monday night, and now, this?

Scorpius smirked at her. Moments later, he strode into the dress shop. "If this is what women wear while shopping, then I'd have been much less adverse to accompanying them."

Rose glanced down and went scarlet. She was still in the little silk slip provided by the saleswitch! Oh Merlin, this day just kept on getting better and better. Instinctively, she pulled at the hem of the slip, begging it to at least cover her knickers.

Scorpius smirk grew more pronounced. He stepped closer to her.

She folded her arms self-consciously and stared indignantly at him. "What are you doing here?"

The wizard gave her a long once-over, his hot gaze making Rose's (unintentionally) scantily clad body flush and her mind run a little wild. _Control yourself, Weasley._

"_Scorpius_," admonished Rose, trying to get his attention. "Eyes up here," she ordered, imploring herself not to blush. It was so hard, though, especially when he was staring at her like _that_…

"Sorry, Head Girl," said Scorpius, his grin unapologetic. "I was… distracted. And before you say anything—no, I wasn't stalking you. I was going to get lunch and just happened to see you. But, hey, who's to argue with fate, right?" He offered her an infuriating wink. "Hungry?"

Rose reddened. "You think you're _so_—"

"Rose? Where are you?" Dom's voice sounded very close by and Rose's eyes widened.

"Quick, you need to leave!" she whispered, grabbing Scorpius' arm and dragging him towards the door.

"What are you—why?"

"Because… because"—If Dom saw Scorpius here, she'd make a big deal of it in front of Victoire and Aunt Fleur and, then, the rest of their family, and Rose just _refused_ to deal with that—"Dom's crazy," blurted Rose, panicking. "She can't see you here!"

"Riight," he said slowly, a grin stretching across his aristocratically good-looking features. "Tell you what: I'll make myself scarce for five minutes if you make an excuse to come have lunch with me." His grin widened as Rose made to protest. "If not, well, I'm sure Dom and I have a lot to talk about," he said, winking as he stepped out of the shop.

Well, _fuck. _She really _was_ hungry, though…

"Rose? Oh, zere you are!" exclaimed Aunt Fleur, her voice making Rose jump.

"We were beginning to think that you'd skipped out on us," joked Victoire, walking over with Dom in tow.

Rose laughed weakly. "Yeah, erm—yeah, so I found something that might work for bridesmaid dresses," she said, pointing at the pale blue gown displayed in the very front of the shop. She hastily glanced out the window. Good, no signs of the annoyingly fit Quidditch player.

"Oh, this looks fantastic, Rose! What do you think, Maman? Dom?"

"Hmm… not bad." Dom tilted her head in consideration, moving closer with Aunt Fleur to inspect the dress. Rose seized this opportunity to quickly change back into her jeans and striped sweater (she still couldn't believe he saw her in that slip!), and wracked her brain for a believable excuse to bail on them.

"Do you think they could make the slit higher?" asked Dom. Rose smirked. Typical Dom. "Ow! Calm down, Maman. I was only wondering…"

"So, Dom," said Victoire in a faux-innocent tone. "I hear Zabini's a free agent now."

Dom immediately reddened. She sent her sister a death glare.

"Zabini?" said Aunt Fleur. "You mean zat Italian boy? I zought you were into zat ozzer… hmm, Aiden—no, Alan? Alec? No, zose don't sound right, either. Your dad will remember. I know you know who I'm talking about, Dom, and I'm a little 'urt you 'aven't told me about 'im yet. Lucy said zat she saw you 'aving lunch with zis brown-'aired man at Benecio's on Wednesday, and zat ze two of you were really 'itting it off! I'm 'appy for you, darling…" Dom determinedly looked anywhere but at her mother, likely plotting ways to hex their cousin Lucy at the next family brunch.

See, _this_ was why Rose refused to involve her family in her personal life. They meant well, but things just got too messy too quickly. Besides, they could be creepily stalker-esque.

"… and zat 'e works in the Ministry! So Percy offered to pull 'is file and apparently, 'e—"

"Merlin, Maman," interrupted Dom at last. "That's Andrew Whittree. He's just a friend I know through work, and I have absolutely no romantic interest in him. Stop listening to Lucy, okay? She's such a bloody twat, spying on us all of the time. Seriously, Maman…"

Rose glanced at her watch and sighed. "Sorry to interrupt, Dommie. My boss just called me in for a last minute meeting. You guys don't mind if I head out now, do you?"

"Of course not, Rose. Go ahead," said Victoire. Her sweet, understanding smile made Rose feel guilty about lying, but the redhead sure as hell wasn't going to let her family make a big deal out of something as trivial as she and Scorpius having lunch. The Weasley family could always be counted on to make something out of nothing at all.

"Zanks for coming, darling. We'll see you soon," promised Aunt Fleur, kissing Rose on the cheek.

Dom made a sympathetic face. "Goldsmith is a git."

"Ugh, tell me about it," said Rose, frowning for added effect. "Okay, I'll see you guys later!"

After another chorus of goodbyes, Rose stepped out of the _Atelia Vika_ bridal boutique and scanned the area for signs of Scorpius. Her irritation spiked as she realized the bloody prat didn't say where to meet him. She decided to head right, in the direction of the Leaky Cauldron. He had to be _somewhere_ close by.

Rose was just passing Eeylops Owl Emporium when she saw something that made her heart clench uncomfortably. A few metres in front of her, a leggy brunette stood kissing a platinum-blond wizard. Even from the back, there was no mistaking the man's identity.

Disappointed, and, Rose thought, inexplicably so, she turned on her heel. She suddenly felt very angry. What gave _him_ the right to behave so—so _flirtatiously_ if he was already involved with someone else? Bloody—

"Damn it, Cecilia! If you keep pulling this kind of shit, I'm going to get a restraining order against you," growled Scorpius, pushing the brunette away from him.

What in Merlin's name…?

Was that Cecilia Bole? Rose smiled wryly. What were the odds?

Cecilia rolled her eyes. "Your grandmother really hopes you'll reconsider, Scorp. I'm hot, you're hot—we look great together."

Scorpius laughed humourlessly. "I don't know what sort of arrangement you have with her, but Elizabeth Greengrass is no grandmother of mine. I don't give a damn what she thinks or wants." He paused for a moment. "Besides, you sure as hell aren't my type."

Rose stood unmoving, feeling both more enlightened and confused as she listened to the conversation. One thing was clear, though: She shouldn't be upset at Scorpius.

Cecilia scowled at him. "You bastard. No wonder Elizabeth has never loved you. You don't deserve a grandmother as—"

Rose moved towards them. Perhaps she was simply extra sensitive towards insults targeting family, but she refused to listen to the brunette's rude drivel any longer. "Who the hell do you think you are?"

"Mind your own business, bitch," retorted Cecilia, taking one disdainful glance at Rose and rolling her eyes.

Scorpius turned around. "Rose…?"

But Rose wasn't paying attention. "Isn't Scorpius a little young for your tastes?" she asked Cecilia dryly. "I've heard you only prefer men thrice your age… or is that only when they pay well?"

Cecilia's eyes flashed angrily, and she moved forward towards the redhead. "Why you little—"

Scorpius, almost instinctively, wrapped his right hand around Rose's waist, pulling her closer to him. He held up his other hand. "Enough," he said to Cecilia. "Don't make a bigger fool of yourself than you already have—although some reputations are unsalvageable," he noted, smirking coldly. "And don't ever bother Rose or myself again. Because you _will_ regret it."

As if realizing she'd finally gone too far, Cecilia's features softened. "_Scorp_," she whined. "Don't be like this. Listen to your grandmother. Give me the chance to show you how much I can… _please _you."

Okay, this slag really needed to learn how to take a hint. Rose, still pressed against Scorpius' side, fumed. She was _beyond_ irritated. What was the matter with this girl? What was going on?

"Scorpius doesn't need anyone else—least of all you—to please him, because he already has me."

Wait.

Why did that voice sound remarkably like—?

…

Oh, _shit_.

What in Merlin's name had she done?

* * *

**A/N:** I'm so sorry for the slow update! I was dealing with finals period and then moving back home, so it was a bit crazy. I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! Thanks so much to everyone who reviewed, alerted, and favorited. :) Please review if you'd like to see more!


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